Teens to Children
by Android-J
Summary: What happens when a baby demon steals Kagome's age and destroys her memory? Let's find out shall we. Finished.
1. Inuyasha vs a threeyearold

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha

As Kagome climbed out of the well, she was met by Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kilala.

"Where's Inuyasha?" she asked as she stepped over the edge of the well, and noticed he was missing.

"We were going to his house when we heard you in the well." said Shippo.

"Let's go then." said Kagome. As they approached the old shrine, which Inuyasha had claimed as his home, they heard what sounded like someone crying.

"Is that a baby?" asked Miroku. When they slide the door open, they were met by Inuyasha holding a crying baby out to them.

"Inuyasha! What the-" Sango started.

"I don't know, but I can't get it to shut up!" yelled Inuyasha still holding it out. Kagome quickly took the baby from the half-demon and started to rock it in her arms. As she did, she saw that in seemed to be trying to suck on air.

"Inuyasha, do you have any baby bottles?" asked Kagome.

"What bottles?" asked Inuyasha.

"Give me something for it to suck on!" demanded Kagome. The group searched frantically for something to silence the baby. Then, when they didn't seem to be able to find anything, Kagome remembered something her mother had done, and stuck her finger in the baby's mouth. The baby silenced immediately as it nibbled on Kagome's finger.

"Will this do?" asked Shippo walking from around Inuyasha's house carrying half of what looked like an arrow.

"No Shippo, something soft." said Kagome. Then Inuyasha stepped out of his house carrying a pacifier. "That'll do. Where'd you get it?" said Kagome as she took it from him.

"It was with him when I found him, I thought it was just a weird ring." he answered. Kagome wiped the pacifier off on her shirt before placing it in the baby's mouth.

"Where'd you find him?" asked Miroku as he and the others approached.

"It was in here when I woke up this morning." said Inuyasha as he stepped back into his home, followed by the rest of them. "He was quiet then, though."

"Have you named him?" asked Sango as she stepped next to Kagome to get a better look at the baby.

"No. It's not mine. I was about to take him to Kaede." said Inuyasha as he sat down on the floor.

"I'll call him Niya then." said Kagome as she sat down next to Inuyasha.

"Isn't he cute." said Sango standing over Kagome. Miroku kneeled down next to her and rubbed the baby's stomach with his index finger.

"Yeah." said the monk as he stood and sat down across from them, he had sensed something within the baby, but couldn't place it. He decided to wait until he could confirm what it was. Shippo hopped onto Kagome's shoulder to see.

"Hey! What's so interesting about a stinkin' bag of droppings?" asked Inuyasha angrily. Before Kagome could scorn him, she smelled it too.

"Peeyuuuu!" said Shippo jumping off Kagome's shoulder and holding his nose. Kagome looked to them for support but no one seemed to want to help.

"Let's go to the river then." said Kagome.

As they walked toward the nearby river, they all desperately tried to cover their noses from the stink.

After Kagome and Sango, 'cleaned' Niya, they sat down by the river.

"Is it safe to breath now?" asked Shippo, who'd been holding his breath for some time now.

"Yes, and thanks for the help guys." said Kagome sarcastically.

"Your welcome." they all said at once. Kagome sighed; this must be the era before sarcasm.

"We should try to find Niya a better home." said Sango. They all agreed. But where?

Then Miroku realized what he had sensed.

"Kagome! Put the baby down quick!" he yelled. They all stared at him in shock at the sudden outburst. But before anyone could react the baby suddenly opened its eyes. They were blood red as the baby spoke in a demonic voice.

"You'll do!" it said, as a blinding light shot from its eyes and into Kagome's. Kagome felt herself shrinking until she blacked out. The baby was now a full grown demon and only Kagome's clothes were left.

"Age stealing demon!" said Miroku as they all stood to their feet. Inuyasha drew his Tetsusaiga and slashed at the demon, but it flew out of the way. Before any of them could try to attack again, the demon disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Dang it! Where'd it go!" said Inuyasha.

"It's gone." said Miroku.

"What happened to Kagome?" asked Shippo. Inuyasha stepped over to the pile of clothes and noticed that they seemed to move. He slowly lifted the collar of her shirt.

"Hello." said something from underneath, causing Inuyasha to jump back in shock.

"What is it?" asked Shippo as he approached. When he lifted the collar to look, he quickly slung it back down, and spun around; blushing a deep red. Then, a three-year-old Kagome crawled out the other end of the clothes.

Sango gasped and quickly ran to cover Kagome, since her clothes didn't seem to fit anymore. She tied Kagome's red scarf around the infant's waste and placed her shirt over her.

"What did that thing do?" she asked looking to Miroku. Just before Miroku could answer, the young Kagome spotted Kilala walking toward her.

"Kitty!" she said happily reaching for the cat. As Kagome petted Kilala (who seemed to enjoy the attention) Miroku explained.

"An age stealing demon steals a person's age and diminishes their memory. They are extremely rare." he told them.

"How do we change her back?" asked Sango.

"Well, there only two known ways; convince the demon to give back what it took, or use the Diamond of Restoration." said Miroku. Then Sango realized that Inuyasha had disappeared. When she looked over, she spotted him sitting down next to Kagome.

"Doggy Man!" said Kagome happily when she saw him. Kilala meowed in disappointment when Kagome stopped petting her, but when she reached to feel Inuyasha's dog ears; he leaned away, causing the child to fall.

"Inuyasha!" said Sango angrily when she saw what he had done.

"What? It's not like she can hurt me; Miroku said she wouldn't remember me, so she obviously doesn't know about the necklace." he said evilly. As Kagome got to her feet again, Sango had realized that he was right, and thought of a solution.

"Inuyasha, either she pets you, or I'll make sure she knows how to use that word." she said with an evil smile. Inuyasha had already hated that Kagome could subdue him as a teenager, and didn't even want to imagine what it would feel like for a three-year-old to do it.

As Kagome scratched his dog ears, she laughed while Inuyasha's eyes twitched and watered as he desperately tried not to purr. After several straight minutes of petting, Inuyasha gave in and purred.

"So where is the Diamond of Restoration?" Sango asked Miroku. His eyes widened in surprise.

"That part I didn't hear." said Miroku with a dumb founded smile. Just before Sango smacked him for that, Kagome spoke up.

"This is fun!" Kagome said happily. Inuyasha (although he would never admit this to the others) actually started to enjoy it. He relaxed as she continued to scratch his ears. When she finally stopped Inuyasha looked up to see why. She was standing beside him with her hands behind her back and had on a wide smile. Then she 'grabbed' his nose off his face. "I got your nose." she said waving her hand in front of him.

Inuyasha saw his nose (her thumb) between her fingers and started to panic.

"Give it back!" he demanded. Kagome started to run away as Inuyasha stood up to give chase. "Give it back dang it!" he shouted at her.

"You have to catch me first!" Kagome called back to him as she ran up the road with Inuyasha right on her heels.


	2. Coming Together

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha

As Inuyasha chased Kagome down the road, the others weren't far behind.

"Give it back!" demanded Inuyasha as he ran after the youngster.

"You have to catch me first!" she called back. Just as Inuyasha was about to pick her up, she took a sharp turn around a tree. Inuyasha continued to chase her around the tree for several minutes before he came up with a plan. When Kagome couldn't hear the half-demon chasing her anymore, she decided to sit down against the tree.

"Gotcha!" called Inuyasha as he jumped down from a high branch and landed in front of the youngster. "Now give it back!" he demanded. When Kagome realized she couldn't run now, she gently slapped his nose again.

"There ya' go." she said happily. Inuyasha rubbed his nose and sniffed the air.

"How'd you do that?" he asked curiously. Kagome just laughed as the rest of the group approached. When Inuyasha stood and faced them he saw that they started to giggle. "What's so funny?" he asked. Shippo pointed at Kagome, who was mimicking Inuyasha. "Stop it!" Inuyasha demanded to her, but only got the same words from her.

"Seems she likes you." said Miroku with a smile.

"Well I don't like her." said Inuyasha turning his back on the child. He immediately turned around again to her when he smelled tears.

"You don't like me?" asked Kagome starting to cry. Inuyasha felt guilty now for he didn't mean to make her cry.

"Kago-" he tried to speak, but was stopped when the child started to cry and whine.

"Inuyasha?" called Sango angrily.

"I didn't mean it!" he snarled at her.

"Then apologize!" she snarled back. Inuyasha kneeled down next to Kagome and tried to talk to her.

"Kagome, I'm sorry! I like you!" he said. She started to calm down and dried her tears.

"Really?" she asked.

"Uh…" Inuyasha hesitated, but didn't have to answer for Kagome gave him a tight hug around his neck.

--

They waited in Inuyasha's home for Miroku and Shippo to return. When the door finally slid open, the monk and little fox entered. Shippo was carrying a bundle of dark blue robes, and Miroku a scroll. Shippo handed Sango the robes, and she took Kagome into another room to help her get dressed, while Miroku unrolled the scroll and placed it on the floor to reveal a large, old map.

"Kaede, said the House of the Doomed should be here." said the monk pointing to a freshly marked X on the map.

"Good, we'll leave tomorrow." stated Inuyasha. "How long should it take?"

"Kaede said it's normally a three day trip by foot." said Miroku. Just then, Sango stepped back in the room and sat down next to Miroku, followed by Kagome dressed in her new robes.

"Looks better." stated Inuyasha with a smile as she sat down next to Sango.

"Thanks." she replied.

--

That night they all found a comfortable place in Inuyasha's home and tried to sleep for the night. After about an hour, Kagome jumped up from her bed made from her old clothes. She looked around her, as she stood and walked over to Inuyasha who was leaning against the wall, snoring.

"Doggy man?" she said softly as she tugged on his sleeve. When he finally awoke, he glanced around and saw the child staring at him.

"Kagome?" he yawned. "What is it?"

"I had a nightmare." she stated.

"So, I have them all the time." he replied. (Needless to say…this didn't help) "Just try to go back to sleep."

"But, what if a monster comes to get me?" she asked with fear in her voice. 'Doggy man' thought for a moment.

"That ain't gonna happen as long as I'm here okay." he assured her. "Now just try to get some sleep, we've got a lot to do in the morning."

He closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep again. He heard her walk back to her 'bed' and back again. He opened his eyes and watched her as she sat down next him, pulled his arm over her, and was fast asleep again. He sighed and closed his eyes.

Sango, who was watching from across the room, smiled at the site and went back to sleep.


	3. Falling apart

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha

The next morning, Inuyasha felt something hard hit his head, causing him to leap to his feet. When he looked around, all he saw was the rest of them standing in front of him.

"What was that for?" he asked rubbing his head.

"Where's Kagome? We can't find her?" said Sango.

"What are you talking about she's right here!" stated Inuyasha pointing to where he was just sleeping. When he looked, though, he saw that the child was gone.

"We have to find her." said Miroku.

"I'll float around to see if I can find her." said Shippo as he ran out the door and poofing into a balloon.

"Inuyasha, see if you can sniff her out." said Sango.

"Why? What could she possibly do when noone's watchin' her?" asked Inuyasha arrogantly.

Inuyasha flew out of his front door as Sango chased him with her boomerang.

Meanwhile…

Kagome was sitting on the side of the river, soaking her feet in the cold water. She decided to go alone when she woke up early, since the rest of them were asleep at the time. She was whistling a tune she'd heard before when she heard someone approaching.

"Who are you?" asked Rin as she walked up to Kagome.

"Hello, I'm Kagome. Who are you?" she replied.

"I'm Rin. Are you from around here?"

"Yeah, I live with Doggy man."

"Doggy man?"

"That's what I call him." said Kagome.

Just then, Shippo hovered down and poofed back into his real form.

"There you are!" he said as he ran up to the children.

"Shippo?" said Rin curiously as she turned to face the kitsune.

"Rin? What are you doing here?" he asked when he saw her.

"Oh, I decided go for a walk."

"Where's Sesshoumaru?" asked Shippo, whose voice started to shake at the very thought of the demon.

"Well, by now, he's probably out looking for me. I didn't tell him I was going." she replied. Shippo twitched. He quickly grabbed Kagome's arm and tried to pull her away before the demon showed up.

"Hey!" shouted Kagome angrily snatching her arm out of Shippo's grip. "What's wrong?"

"We have to get you out of here before-" he started, but stopped cold when he saw that Lord Sesshoumaru had just walked up.

"Rin! Where have you been!" he asked angrily.

"I just went for a walk." said Rin.

"You know you're supposed to tell me when you go off!" Sesshoumaru scorned her. Shippo continuously tried to pull Kagome away, but her curiousity got the better of her.

"Hey there! Are you Sess-omaro?" asked Kagome fumbling with his name.

"Who are you?" said Sesshoumaru stepping closer to them. Then, he sensed the spell that had changed Kagome. "So, the reincarnation of Kikyo has had her age stolen." he stated with an evil smile.

"IRON REAVER SOUL STEALER!" shouted Inuyasha at his half-brother as he ran toward him. Sesshoumaru easily dodged the attack and faced him. "Leave her alone!" stated Inuyasha angrily drawing his Tetsusaiga. Sesshoumaru only laughed.

"Dear brother, do you honestly think I would hurt her?" asked Sesshoumaru arrogantly.


	4. Ouch!

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha…STOP ASKING!

Inuyasha glared at his brother, who returned the look.

"Then why are you here?" demanded Inuyasha.

"That's none of your concern dear brother." replied Sesshoumaru calmly. "If you wish to strike, go ahead, but I must warn you of the dangers." he told him.

Inuyasha couldn't attack since Sess was close to Kagome.

"Coward." he spat.

"Coward? I beg to differ." said Sess. Suddenly he struck.

As the half-brothers dueled, Joken, and Inu's group showed up. After several minutes of being evenly matched, they noticed something.

"Where's Kagome?" asked Inuyasha. Sess noticed that Rin had eluded him as well. They looked around and found them sitting under a tree, playing 'patty cake'. Suddenly Sess delivered a quick punch in that stunned Inuyasha.

"Rin, come. We're leaving." Sess called. Rin said goodbye to Kagome and ran over to catch up to him.

"Where do you think you're going?" asked Inuyasha as he stumbled to his feet. Sess turned to face him.

"So you wish for more?" he asked.

"Bring it." Inu replied. Sess 'dashed' over to Inu and grabbed him by the throat. As he was choking his half-brother, he felt something hit his leg. He looked over to see Kagome standing beside him, holding a hammer. He dropped Inu and faced her.

"Leave him alone!" she demanded. Sess grabbed her by the back of her robes and lifted her off the ground. She started to swing wildly, but couldn't reach him.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked calmly. Suddenly, she swung and hit his arm, hard. He dropped her and held his forearm in pain. Then Kagome made another blow that connected with Sess's, uh…'tender area'.

Sess took a slight gasp and cough as he fell to the ground in a beetle position. Inuyasha quickly grabbed Kagome's arm and pulled her away. They all struggled to keep themselves from laughing, as Joken and Rin ran to Sess's aid.

"M' lord are you okay?" asked Joken. Sess could only give him an angry look.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, let me see the wound!" said Rin trying to 'expose' him. Sess managed to grab his pants and stop her.

"Get away! Joken, get her!" said Sess in a high pitched voice. Joken jerked her away.

"Now Rin, he'll be okay." said Joken.

"Kagome, where'd you find that?" asked Miroku looking down at her.

"Over there." said Kagome pointing toward the tree she was sitting under.

"We'll finish this another time." said Sess, with his normal voice back, as he struggled to stand. As he limped away, Inuyasha and the rest of them burst out laughing.

"Okay, we need to start on the road." said Sango when they finally started to calm.

They started on their journey. After several hours of walking, they decided to take a break. As they sat down, they each took out a loaf of bread and began to eat.

"Why are you still carrying that?" asked Shippo to Kagome, who was still holding the hammer.

"I can't get rid of it." she replied. They all gave her an estranged look. "Watch." she told them. She threw the hammer into the air; it went several feet before it stopped in mid-air and returned to Kagome.

"What in the world?" stated Sango as she walked over. Miroku examined the hammer and realized something.

"This must be the a hammerang." he stated. (yes, I made that up)

"A what?" asked Kagome.

"A hammerang is a magic hammer that you can't lose until it's no longer needed." he explained. Sango thought of a way for her to 'test' it.

"Kagome, how about testing it?" Sango asked her sweetly.

"How?" asked Kagome.

"Throw it at him." she said pointing towards 'Doggy man'.

"What!" asked Inuyasha in shock. Without question, Kagome tossed the hammer. Inuyasha braced for pain as the hammer closed in. Just when it was a mere inch from his face, it stopped and returned to Kagome's hand. "That wasn't funny." stated Inuyasha angrily.

"I know." said Sango.

"Then why'd ya' have her do it!" shouted Inuyasha.

"I thought you knew." she giggled.

"Knew what?"

"A hammering can't hurt an ally."


	5. She knows SIT!

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha

As the group walked down the old road, Kagome watched her hammerang drag on the ground as it followed its owner.

"That's creepy." said Shippo as he watched it.

"Come." said Kagome holding her hand up as the hammer flew into her hand.

"Can it sit too?" laughed Inuyasha without thinking.

"Let's see, sit."

BAM!

"What happened to Doggy man?" asked Kagome as she watched Inuyasha stagger to his feet.

"I tripped." he said trying not to get mad.

Then they came upon a large village. Miroku unrolled their map and scanned it for a moment.

"According to the map, this is the village of Meadow." he said. Suddenly Miroku dropped the map and ran forward, toward a young woman whom he'd just spotted.

"And I thought this was going to be a good day." sighed Sango.

--

That night, in the small cabin they rented, Miroku sat, unconscious, in a corner with several large bumps on his head, as the rest of them ate their meals.

"So how far did we make it today?" asked Shippo after finishing his meal.

"If we keep up our pace, we should get there in just a few more days." said Sango who was holding the map.

"You're cute." said Kagome as she continued to pet Kilala who didn't complain.

"You're kidding me, a few more days of her and I'll go insane!" Inuyasha moaned.

"Oh come on is it really that bad?" asked Sango sweetly. Inuyasha glared at her.

"Doggy man silly." stated Kagome happily at him.

"You're the one petting a cat demon." he said. Kagome pointed her tongue at him, and he copied her. She stood and walked up to him.

"Got your nose again!" said Kagome 'taking' his nose off his face again.

"Not again! Give it back!" demanded Inuyasha as she ran away. He stood and gave chase around the room.

For several minutes, they ran around the room until, Kagome tripped and fell. She sat up and started to cry.

"OOWWW! MY KNEE!" she cried holding her knee in agony.

"Are you okay?" asked Sango as she ran to her side.

"My knee!" Kagome whined. Sango gently rolled up her robes so she could see Kagome's knee.

"Oh, it's just a scrap." said Inuyasha ignorantly.

"It hurts." said Kagome.

"Just a minute." said Sango.

After rubbing some herbs on her knee, Sango tied Kagome's scarf around her knee.

"Is that better?" asked Sango sweetly.

"Yes." said Kagome as she dried her tears.

"Can I have my nose back now?" asked Inuyasha from across the room.

"It's still on your face." said Sango irritably without looking at him. Inuyasha rubbed his face and realized that she was right.

"Can I try something?" asked Kagome looking up at Sango.

"Sure." Sango replied trying to figure out what she was talking about.

"SIT BOY!" Kagome shouted.

BAM!

"How did-" started Inuyasha as he staggered to his feet.

"I saw what happened earlier." said Kagome. "SIT, SIT, SIT!" she continued to shout.

After putting Inuyasha in a crater, Kagome finally stopped.

"Oooww." moaned Inuyasha miserably.


	6. Not again!

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

As they prepared to leave, Inuyasha was dragging himself around the floor in pain. He had just finally gotten out of the crater, and couldn't hold himself up.

"Why did you have to do that?" he asked angrily at Kagome.

"It was funny." she replied smiling at him warmly.

"Come on Inuyasha, we have to go." said Sango trying to enjoy his pain as much as possible, but only got a mean look.

"In case you haven't noticed, I can't walk!" Inuyasha scorned.

"Just use your sword as a cane." Miroku told him.

Using his sword as a cane, he stumbled along with them. They set off for the next village which they had planned to stop. They had been going without problem, but Inuyasha's 'injuries' slowed them down. After an entire afternoon of traveling, they stopped by a river to rest. As Kagome played by the water, the rest of them sat around.

"Why don't you play with me?" asked Kagome pulling Inuyasha's sleeve.

"I can barely walk because of you." he stated calmly without looking at her.

"You silly, come play!" she said again tugging at him.

"No."

"Come on."

"No." he getting irritated.

"Please."

"No, go play with Shippo." he pointed at the kitsune who was about to smash an acorn with Kagome's hammerang.

"But he's busy."

"Sango."

"Come on Kagome." said Sango standing and holding a hand out to her.

After a short time of playing, they set off again. It was almost nighttime when they finally arrived at the next village. Suddenly, there was an explosion, as one of the huts burst into flames. They ran to help just as a large cat demon leaped from the wreckage.

"Kilala GO!" Sango ordered, jumping onto her cat demon and flying toward the other cat demon. Just as she was about to throw her boomerang, Sango realized she wasn't alone on Kilala's back. "Kagome! What you-"

"I want to help." said the three year old. Sango smirked as she threw her large boomerang straight for the cat demon. The cat demon just barely dodged the boomerang, but was caught by Kagome's hammerang. The sudden blow knocked it out cold, and it crashed to the ground. Kagome and Sango both caught their weapons as Kilala drifted softly to the ground.

"Yay, we did it!" shouted Kagome happily once she was on the ground. "We beat 'em!"

"Hm, so you've defeated my cat demon." said a demonic voice, getting their attention as the others caught up with them.

"Who are you?" asked Sango, seeing someone hiding behind a nearby tree.

"I am the age stealer demon that made young Kagome there the way she is now." said Niya stepping out from behind the tree. "And now I need some more."

"You won't touch her." said Inuyasha stepping in front of Kagome with Tetsusaiga drawn and ready to fight.

"Oh I'm not after her." said Niya slowly getting closer. "I need him." Niya pointed at Shippo, who had just hopped down beside Inuyasha. Suddenly, the blinding light hit the little fox demon.

"Wind tunnel!" Miroku shouted, opening the vortex in his palm, but it was too late, Niya vanished again. Miroku cursed under his breath, knowing what it had done.

They all looked down at Shippo, who only stared forward as he fell back on his behind. It seemed that nothing about him had changed as he just sat there, and blinked. Suddenly, Shippo threw his head back and started crying.

--

"If it wasn't bad enough we had a three-year-old, now we have a baby." Inuyasha complained as Sango finished clipping on the baby fox demon's new diaper on him. Shippo, at least physically, hadn't changed at all, except that his kimono was a little loose, and he only had four sharp baby teeth in his mouth.

"Inuyasha, can you watch him for a minute?" Sango asked as she set the baby in his lap before he could respond. "We need to get some more supplies for the trip tomorrow."

Without listening to Inuyasha's 'not so kind' words, they all walked out, leaving him alone with the baby, which was reaching up to him innocently. Inuyasha stood, barely limping to the door while holding Shippo in his arm. He made sure he was alone before sitting down again with the baby, a smile crossing his face.

"He is kinda cute." Inuyasha spun his index finger around Shippo's little face as he giggled and tried to catch it. Inuyasha stopped and held still when he finally managed to grab hold of the huge finger in both hands. Suddenly, Shippo pulled his finger into his mouth and bit down.

"AAHH IT'S GOT FANGS!!!" Inuyasha screamed as he tried to shake off the baby as it dug its adorably little fangs deeper into his finger, giggling as he flew through the air. Inuyasha held him under his arm and pulled his finger free as Shippo continued to giggle and started to clap his hands. He breathed heavily as he watched the blood trickle down his hand.

Shippo giggled adorably as Inuyasha sat down and held him up in front of him.

"Think that's funny huh?" he asked, an evil grin crossing his face now. He was about to try and get even, but something about the baby stopped him. Inuyasha stared at him as Shippo stared back, amazed by Inuyasha's ears. Shippo reached up for them, but Inuyasha only cradled him in his arm and rocked him back and forth.

Inuyasha's conscience had gotten the best of him. He didn't want to see an orphan like himself cry like he did when he was so young. Then he realized Shippo had already fallen asleep, and smiled.

"I promise, I'll get you back to normal Shippo." he said aloud to himself.


	7. DADDA!

Inuyasha walked, his back having finally healed, holding the baby fox demon in his arm. Shippo had long since fallen asleep, and Kagome had seemed to keep away from the baby, fearing his little fangs.

"So, how much longer do we have?" Inuyasha asked, looking over at Miroku. The monk pulled out his map and read through it for a moment.

"Actually, if we keep up our pace, we should be there late tomorrow." Miroku said.

"You mean I'll finally be my own age again?" Kagome asked, looking up at the monk. When he nodded, she jumped up happily. "Yay! I'll finally be able to stay up late!"

Miroku and Sango let out a laugh, while Inuyasha only let out a chuckle. When he did, however, he accidentally disturbed Shippo, who slowly woke up and opened his baby blue eyes. His eyes wondered around then found Inuyasha's golden ones.

"Dadda."

Everyone froze, and Inuyasha, slowly looked down at the baby fox demon in horror as he smiled and rubbed his left eye. He looked up at him again and smiled happily.

"He thinks you're his-"

"I heard him Miroku." Inuyasha interrupted him irritably, glaring at him. Sango walked up beside him and tickled Shippo's thick, soft, little belly. He giggled adorably and before Inuyasha could stop them, grabbed her finger and pulled it into his mouth. Sango giggled.

"His gums are soft." she smiled at him as Shippo teethed on her finger. Inuyasha stared at Shippo in a mix of happiness and anger as his deliberately avoided chewing on her finger with his little teeth.

--

"Yeah, not interested." Inuyasha said, turning away from the man, showing him the line of swords.

"Oh, but sir, I'm telling you, these are almost as powerful as your sword you carry on your side." the old man said. "I'm sure they could keep back even the strongest of demons to protect even your son."

Inuyasha said nothing as he walked away, trying to keep Shippo in his grip. Shippo seemed to be attracted to anything that shined. Every time he saw something like a shiny coin, or sword, he'd try and reach out to it and walk to it, though the first time he tried, he just tumbled to the ground and only crawled, and Inuyasha didn't want to take the chance of losing him right now.

They were in a crowded marketplace. Sango and Miroku were searching for rumors while Inuyasha and Kagome were getting supplies. Kagome had calmed down after Inuyasha threatened her with a spanking. She did as she was told and held onto Inuyasha pant's leg while he led her around and he carried Shippo in his arms.

"Okay, all we need now is…" Inuyasha thought back on what they needed. "Rice." After getting the food, he walked back to the edge of town where they were scheduled to meet the others. Since they weren't there yet, Inuyasha sat against a tree and set Shippo beside him and watched him crawl around, trying to get back to the marketplace just before an extended arm came under him and set him back beside his protective 'Father'.

"INUYASHA!!!" he jumped from his slumber in horror as Sango glared at him, holding Shippo in her arm. He instantly knew what happened. He'd fallen asleep, and Shippo wondered off.

"Why can't you simply watch a child without getting irresponsible?!"

"Hey! It's not like I meant to fall asleep!" Inuyasha snapped.

"Where's Kagome?" Miroku pointed out. Everything seemed to stop around Inuyasha as a chill went down his back. He leaped into the air and into a high tree just as Sango swung her boomerang. He had to find her before Sango caught him. He sniffed the air, and quickly found her scent.

"It's awesome!" Kagome tossed her hammer into the air and watched as it soared through the air, and then back to her hand. The crowd clapped and stared dropping small coins onto her sunhat she'd laid on the ground. When the crowd finally dispersed, Inuyasha landed in front of her, a soar look on his face.

"Where'd you go?!" he asked, glaring at her.

"I made some money." She held up her sunhat full of money in front of him. Inuyasha was taken by such a surprise he never saw Sango and the others approaching…or her boomerang.

"ACK!!!" Inuyasha felt a foot shorter when Sango pulled her boomerang off his head.

--

"Don't!" Kagome said, as Shippo crawled closer to her. "Just don't!" she said, trying to get away from him, but she was cornered by a wall. He crawled up to her and licked her cheek before sitting down next to her innocently. "Eeeww."

"Okay, you two, it's time for bed." Sango said smiling at them.

"Okay." Kagome said, looking across the hut at Inuyasha who'd just laid down on his bed of straw. She walked over and put her back to his. Inuyasha sighed irritably, but said nothing. Then they all watched as Shippo crawled over to him. Even though he didn't understand a word they said, he seemed to understand sleeping time.

He crawled and tumbled over Inuyasha's legs. He giggled as though it didn't hurt, and then crawled up to his arm, and rested his head on his extended bicep. A quick scoot to make him closer to Inuyasha, and he closed his eyes. A silent 'Feh', and Inuyasha closed his eyes.

He waited until he was sure the others were asleep before holding the puppy close in his arm.

"One more day." Inuyasha told himself. "One more day and everything'll be back to normal."


	8. The Finale

"Whoa!" Kagome gasped at the sight of the huge temple that Inuyasha knew the Diamond of Restoration would be. The only thing that would make Shippo and Kagome turn back into their former selves.

When they approached, a huge samurai stepped out from the front door, glaring at them. Even before he spoke, Inuyasha knew he'd have to fight him.

"Halt!" the samurai shouted, holding up his hand. "If you wish to use the Diamond, you'll have to prove your worth, and need."

"Young Kagome and Shippo here, have been victim to an age stealer demon." Miroku shouted out before Sango could, gesturing to the young ones. "We wish to restore them to their rightful age."

The samurai glared at the two children. Sango held Shippo in her arms like a mother as the samurai glared them all down. Without a single word, he stepped closer and began to draw his sword.

"Show me no fear and I shall allow you to use the Diamond." The samurai said, looking at Inuyasha. He never felt so helpless, but something inside him made him not dare move as the samurai slashed at him. Sango and Miroku gasped while Kagome screamed in horror as the edge of the blade stopped, just touching Inuyasha's skin.

They stood there for a moment, neither of them daring to move. When the samurai pulled his sword away and sheathed it reverently, he looked at them all and smiled.

"You may enter." he said turning his back to them and walking toward the temple. Miroku stepped over and slapped Inuyasha on the shoulder and got the most threatening glare he'd ever gotten from him.

"Don't you ever touch me!" Inuyasha said, his eyes flaring with rage. Miroku swore his hand would've caught fire if he'd've kept it to close to him. Inuyasha didn't say anything as he led the way behind the samurai.

Inside the temple, Inuyasha realized why it was called the Temple of the Doomed. Everyone he saw, mostly servants or maidens, were all sick and several laid on the floor, obviously on their last breaths of air.

"What are they doing?" Sango asked as the walked.

"This is a temple for the dying." the samurai spoke up. "Plague, curses, the like. Everyone in this temple is doomed to a slow death. We take them in and comfort them until they're gone from this world. The Diamond is in here."

The samurai revealed to them, a huge set of double doors. When he opened them, Inuyasha felt a strange aura. Then he saw it. It was a clear, shining diamond sitting in the middle of the room, the rest of the room having been completely clean and spotless.

"Now just leave your victims here and stand aside while I return them to their original states." the samurai said as he stepped up and grabbed the diamond.

Just as Inuyasha watched Sango set Shippo on the floor, he heard a crack and looked up just as a fist collided with his face. As Inuyasha flew back, Sango quickly attacked Niya who'd just appeared between them and the samurai.

"You'll never get their ages back!" Niya screamed as Sango threw her huge boomerang at him. He barely managed to dodge it as Miroku slapped a scroll onto his shoulder. Before he could grab it, Miroku slammed his staff into him and brought him to the floor. Just as Inuyasha drew Tetsusaiga to finish him, the samurai grabbed Niya by his shoulders, and lifted him off the ground.

Niya's eyes and mouth lit up and a bright beam of light shot out from them as he screamed. Inuyasha noticed that the samurai had been holding the diamond against the demon's chest. When the lights finally faded, Niya disintegrated into a pile of dust on the ground.

"What did you do?" Kagome asked, who was hiding behind Miroku, Shippo sleeping on her back as she held him by the arms.

"After I saw you Monk, exercise him, I knew his physical being was weak so I sent his soul to Hell before he had a chance to recover. Tis not the first time I've met this one." There was a long pause. "His real name was Titsuguay. He's been after this Diamond for years."

"Well, at least you don't have to worry about him now huh." Kagome said, setting Shippo on the ground gently. The aged samurai's eyes looked as though they would burst into tears as he looked down at the diamond.

"I'm afraid, Age Stealing Demons have one power that prevents that. That's the third time I've faced Titsuguay. Each time I've sent him to Hell, but he still comes back. How he does it, I don't know, but he does." The samurai then looked at the young ones again. "Let us cure them before we continue."

The samurai began to mutter a spell as the diamond began to glow, and floated out of his hand. Two lights shot out of it, swirling lazily through the air. They slowly approached Kagome and, the still sleeping, Shippo. When they found them, Kagome began to grow, as Shippo's teeth began to regrow.

When Kagome was back to her full age, and aware as to what was going on around her, she shrieked.

--

The samurai's huge kimono hung below her knees as she tied the sleeves to tighten it around her. Inuyasha grumbled in a corner as he did everything not to show the pain in his back from the four 'sit' orders on impact of Kagome realizing that, while she did grow, her small clothes, didn't.

"Thank you very much for helping us kind sir." Miroku said, bowing to the large, now barebacked samurai. He smiled as he finally felt a cool breeze on his hairy chest for the first time in years.

"It was no problem at all, just try not to fall for that curse again."

With that, the friends, Kagome, Sango, Miroku, and Inuyasha all took their leave.

"Hey! What about me?!" Shippo ran out of the shrine to catch up, having just woken up. "Wait up!" he ran as fast as he could. They stopped and waited just as he accidentally tripped and hit face first into the dirt at Inuyasha's feet. He looked up at him. "You left me!"

"Inuyasha, you said he was still sleeping in Sango's pack." Kagome glared at him. From the twitch in her eye, he knew what was next.

"No wait, Kagome, I-"

"SIT!"


End file.
